October 2021 – Recent News

Zip code doesn’t matter / National Domestic Violence Awareness Month

Regardless of zip code, age, gender, socio-economic status, sexual orientation or race, domestic violence is prevalent in all communities. There are many organizations that provide support services to survivors and abusers of domestic violence. We are taking this opportunity to acknowledge a couple of our grantees for their dedicated and compassionate work in our community.

Supporting refugees and immigrants in San Diego / License to Freedom

• According to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, one in three women and one in four men have been or will be victims of physical violence by an intimate partner within their lifetime. In San Diego, License to Freedom offers may types of services to survivors and abusers of domestic violence, including crisis intervention and free legal services through a partnership with San Diego Volunteer Lawyer Program. Read more.
• In case you missed it…Home Start holds its Hallo-Wine Fall Festival every year in October in recognition of National Domestic Violence Awareness Month. Home Start is dedicated to child abuse prevention and to providing evidence-based family strengthening services.
• In case you missed it…Olivewood Gardens‘ The Kitchenistas documentary which highlights the struggles and accomplishments of families in National City living with diabetes, obesity and other health conditions related to nutrition, had its local debut screening Oct 18. If you missed it, visit  How to Watch for a schedule of future screenings.
• Our friends at Brother Benno’s provided an update on their renovation plans for upgrading their kitchen and food preparation areas. As their drawings wind their way through San Diego County and City of Oceanside offices, a responsive grant from Alliance will be helping Brother Benno’s improve its food service to homeless and low-income families.

Ending Homelessness / A plan for San Diego

Housing is a key social determinant of health and improves the well-being of people and communities. This drafted regional action plan to end homelessness in San Diego has been submitted for public comment.

Tenets of the plan:

• Homelessness is unacceptable in San Diego;
• Homelessness is a solvable problem in San Diego, and
• San Diego is committed to ending homelessness.

Useful Summary / The American Rescue Plan Act

ARPA of 2021 became law on March 11, 2021. The Act provided $1.9 trillion to speed recovery from the effects of COVID-19 and the ongoing recession. AHF has provided this curated summary  to give nonprofits a leg up in their research to identify ARPA funding that might help their work. The ARPA summary:

• provides amount, eligibility, uses and source for each category;
• is searchable by keyword, and
• is formatted for quick scanning.

What’s inspiring us

• Free to Thrive advocated to improve California’s criminal vacatur law via AB 262 and joined other like-minded organizations to create a statewide coalition to advocate for AB 124 – the Justice for Survivors Act. Governor Newsom has signed both into law. | Changing the Narrative: Recognizing the Victimization of Criminalized Survivors.
• Mid-City CAN‘s advocacy efforts are currently focused on transportation justice. Specifically they are speaking out for no-cost transit passes for all youth, known as Youth Opportunity Passes. News this week: SANDAG approved $8m for the Social Equity Transit Pilot Program | YOP
• Think you know about first aid, EXIT signs, and fire extinguisher maintenance? When it comes to Disaster Preparedness Planning, there’s always more to learn. Here is an organized 3-week approach that we found helpful. Source: Marsh & McLennan Agency | 3-week preparedness
• “The success of a company depends on its tribes. The strength of its tribes is determined by the tribal culture, and a thriving corporate culture can only be established by an effective tribal leader.” From the book, Tribal Leadership, Leveraging natural groups to build a thriving organization by Dave Logan, John King and Halee Fischer-Wright. | Tribal Leadership
• Our partner, Imperial Valley Wellness Foundation, hosted a discussion for funders and Imperial County nonprofits on Oct 25. Titled Imperial Valley’s Response to Resiliency, this free webinar was designed to start a regional conversation about how to strengthen the Valley’s health and wellness system so it will be better prepared for the next emergency and be more resilient in serving the community on a day-to-day basis. | Watch recording

Get involved

• Catalyst of San Diego and Imperial Counties will be holding its annual conference (virtual) Nov 3+4. All In will provide opportunities to connect with and learn from peers, members of regional and national philanthropy, and experts on our region. | Read more
• Live Well Advance (Nov 17+18) is in a few weeks. Mark your calendar to Recover, Renew and Reconnect. Registration is open. | Registration
• State of Reform will be holding its Southern California Health Policy Conference in San Diego, December 2. This health-policy focused conference will have a local San Diego focus and is a great opportunity to dialogue about the opportunities and challenges facing our health care system. | Conference.

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About Alliance Healthcare Foundation
Alliance Healthcare Foundation (AHF) is a nonprofit organization that advances health equity in San Diego and Imperial counties through strategic grantmaking, impact investing, catalyzing innovation, community collaboration and advocacy. Guided by the belief that all people have a personal desire and basic human right to be well, AHF strives to reduce – and ultimately eliminate – disparities across all social determinants of health. We do this by undoing the root causes in society that benefit some over others; addressing immediate needs with a robust safety net that can help people in their times of greatest need, and investing in lasting solutions in the form of scalable and sustainable innovations that can transform long-term outcomes for communities experiencing the greatest health inequities. The organization envisions a San Diego and Imperial County region where all people can attain their full health and well-being potential regardless of zip code, race/ethnicity, socio-economic status, gender or ability.